Universal Health Services, Inc. $UHS Stock Holdings Reduced by CastleKnight Management LP

CastleKnight Management LP lowered its position in Universal Health Services, Inc. (NYSE:UHS) by 63.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 40,100 shares of the health services provider’s stock after selling 69,700 shares during the quarter. CastleKnight Management LP’s holdings in Universal Health Services were worth $8,743,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of UHS. Pzena Investment Management LLC grew its stake in Universal Health Services by 310.2% in the third quarter. Pzena Investment Management LLC now owns 1,607,029 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $328,541,000 after purchasing an additional 1,215,286 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Universal Health Services in the fourth quarter valued at about $199,334,000. Nomura Holdings Inc. grew its stake in Universal Health Services by 100.6% in the second quarter. Nomura Holdings Inc. now owns 2,560 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $464,000 after purchasing an additional 426,211 shares in the last quarter. Morgan Stanley grew its stake in Universal Health Services by 59.5% in the fourth quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 871,377 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $189,978,000 after purchasing an additional 325,162 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Holocene Advisors LP grew its stake in Universal Health Services by 262.4% in the third quarter. Holocene Advisors LP now owns 358,885 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $73,370,000 after purchasing an additional 259,861 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.05% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

UHS has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on Universal Health Services from $233.00 to $212.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 29th. Wells Fargo & Company initiated coverage on Universal Health Services in a research note on Monday, June 1st. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $165.00 target price on the stock. Mizuho lowered their target price on Universal Health Services from $267.00 to $230.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 29th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their target price on Universal Health Services from $261.00 to $230.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 29th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald decreased their price target on Universal Health Services from $229.00 to $194.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 29th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Universal Health Services currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $218.63.

Universal Health Services Stock Performance

UHS opened at $141.19 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $8.55 billion, a PE ratio of 5.88, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.78 and a beta of 1.07. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $164.04 and a 200-day moving average of $194.05. Universal Health Services, Inc. has a 52-week low of $140.08 and a 52-week high of $246.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a current ratio of 1.08.

Universal Health Services (NYSE:UHS) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The health services provider reported $5.62 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $5.41 by $0.21. The company had revenue of $4.50 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.39 billion. Universal Health Services had a return on equity of 19.57% and a net margin of 8.56%.The firm’s revenue was up 9.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $4.84 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Universal Health Services, Inc. will post 23.47 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Universal Health Services Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 18th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 8th will be paid a dividend of $0.20 per share. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.6%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 8th. Universal Health Services’s dividend payout ratio is 3.33%.

Universal Health Services Profile

Universal Health Services, Inc (NYSE: UHS) is one of the largest diversified health care management companies in the United States, offering a broad spectrum of services through its acute care hospital and behavioral health segments. The company operates general acute care hospitals, surgical hospitals and ambulatory centers, as well as inpatient and outpatient behavioral health facilities. Its network provides emergency and specialized medicine, diagnostic imaging, laboratory services, advanced surgical care and rehabilitation, complemented by a comprehensive array of behavioral services including psychiatric treatment, addiction programs and developmental disabilities care.

In the acute care segment, UHS’s facilities deliver services ranging from emergency department treatment and intensive care to maternity care and outpatient surgery.